Keith I. Marszalek / NOLA.comJuvenile performs at the New Orleans Jazz Festival, Sunday, May 2, 2010.Both Juvenile and Mannie Fresh have new albums out from late 2009. Today on Congo Square, the rapper and DJ - who go back almost 15 years as Cash Money Records labelmates - stuck largely to the old school.

It went back even farther than that at the set's opening. DJ Mannie Fresh did not, actually, DJ at all during the set (he also raps, and had top-selling albums on the late 90's and early 00's as half of the Big Tymers). That was left to Leroy "Precise" Edwards, who produced Juvenile and Mystikal's earliest tracks, and DJ Wop, who's been running with Fresh since the early 80's, spinning at block parties with the New York Incorporated hip-hop crew.

After a verse from "Go DJ," and the Big Tymers' "Still Fly," Fresh set the mood by wagging a finger at Precise, whose CDJ had a glitch.

"Computers!" he said. "Y'all need to get some real turntables." He then invited out rapper Gregory D, with whom he'd put out an album, "D Rules The Nation", in 1987.

A live bass player slapped his strings as the two performed their 80's local hit "Buck Jump Time," a shout-out to New Orleans projects, local references and in-jokes with a second-line tuba bassline and a syncopated beat. Then Juvie took the stage and fast-forwarding things ever so slightly, with "400 Degreez" (1998) and "Set It Off" (2000).

Juvenile detoured to the present once, with "Gotta Get It," the second single off of last fall's "Cocky And Confident," but for the most part, he and Fresh stuck to their old catalogs, sparring and joking easily as if the stage were their living room.

"This is the greatest hits of Universal Juvie right here," he said.

"Did we forget anything, y'all?"

At request, Juvenile hit "Solja Rags" (1997), then Fresh introduced rapper The Show, a signee to his Chubby Boy Music label. Again, briefly back to the present for new tracks "Like A Boss" and Fresh's remix of Rick Ross' "Drought" - then back in the wayback machine.

Juvenile took out his own camera at one point to film the audience.

"We're gonna put you on Youtube, New Orleans!" Fresh shouted.

The mood was briefly somber as Juvenile gave shout-outs to two late Cash Money artists who were killed in the 90's, Pimp Daddy and Yella Boy of UNLV. He then performed "Slow Motion," a collaboration with Soulja Slim that became a posthumous hit when Slim was killed before its release in 2003.

The only off-kilter moment was the introduction of Sole Fresh, a gangly, teenaged rap duo from Metairie currently working with Fresh. Their first album, "Peace, Love and Overweight Babies" is due out summer 2010.

Gesturing and jumping like an extra-spastic version of the Beastie Boys, they performed a song that seemed to be about being excited to turn 21, so that they could drink Jagermeister and throw up. It was very hard to tell if it was a joke.

Then it was back to back-in-the-day. The closer was the party-pumping "Back That Ass Up" (little attention was paid to language at Congo Square during Juvie's set) seguing into "Drop It Like It's Hot." Even in the light mist of rain and gusting wind, the crowd did as told.

"If somebody gets pregnant tonight," Fresh said, "You got to name the baby after me or Juve. Because the magic happened right here."